Lens help please (Part 2)

[Mickee]

Thx again all for all your help & the direction you have given me.

As stated and asked in the part 1, I am going with the Rebel XT and I am trying to think this methodically through so my purchase will be the correct one for me.

I think I have it narrowed down to the following lenses.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM
Canon EF-S 17mm-85mm f/4.0-5.6 USM IS

By summers end I should be able to get something long for birding.

Please give me some ideas & direction on filters.



Thank you again for your help.

 

[AZ JazzyJ]

I'm not a Canon-ite so I can't talk about the quality of the lenses you are considering. I can say through experience that I have found the newer versions of the zoom lenses to be as good as the prime lens for a single focal length. That being said, I have gone to zoom lenses for most of my work just to give me the flexibility of composition without having to change position. I tend to shoot lots of low light or fast action photography so a fast lens is paramount to me. I therefore carry with me: 17-55mm f/2.8, 70-200mm f/2.8, and if I am not worried about weight I'll also add a 28-70mm f/2.8 lens. I also keep a 2x teleconverter in the bag for times with 200mm just is not long enough. Having a f/2.8, I only lose 1-2 f-stops with a teleconverter giving me 400mm. If I factor in the fact that the digital sensor has a 1.5x multiplier that really gives me a 600mm f/4 lens at a fraction of the cost and bulk.


Jeff

 

[geetey]

Just getting started with this as well, Mickee. I did want to let you know that B & H photo has a Rebel XT with the 17-85mm IS USM as the kit lens. My camera should be here by Friday!
I could not find a single local camera shop that has that lens in stock but based on the online reviews I read, I plan on using that lens as my walkaround.

 

[boBQuincy]

I have the 70-200 f4L, it will be hard to find a sharper lens, even at f4.
...except for the 85 1.8, which is probably one of Canon's sharpest lenses.

The 17-85 is a great all-around lens but it has a considerable amount of CA and is somewhat slow on the long end (5.6). When used wide open it is not that sharp, yet at 85 it often needs to be wide open. The 17-40 and the 24-105 are a lot better optically.

Most people throw away a lot of the sharpness of their lenses through camera shake. Even at 1/125 a monopod or tripod helps a lot, don't just take my word for it, it's in Ansel Adams' book "The Camera".

Canon's IS works well and it works even better with a monopod.


boB